When I decided to help the Kash family move, I realized there would be some problems. First, my ship was not designed to carry a large number of organics. Second, when I arrived on Tatooine, I thought about "hiring" additional workers to make the job easier for me. Of course, I will give everyone I hire a choice to choose only motivated workers. I was planning our Tatooine route when Kash walked into the room. After all the machinations with the delivery and the firing, she looked years older. Her eyes were full of joy and incredibly exhausted from years of shedding tears.

"Why did you pay for me and my family? What does that give you?"

"So the first thing you do for me is look for a reason instead of simple gratitude."

"Nothing is free in this galaxy. You can't expect someone to hold up their end of the bargain unless you have a way to intimidate them."

"And what intimidation did you use on me?"

"There were explosives in at least three crates on different ships. I put detonators on them so that if I didn't come back, they would explode."

"That's a good idea, but I've already received reports of detonators being found during the loading phase. Besides, how were you going to control that they would explode on me and not on the pirates?"

"I didn't plan for that. It would have been better if it had detonated on the pirates. This whole trip to Tatooine is just one improvisation after another. I decided to bet on you because you have a better reputation than Reys anyway. He was one of the reasons my family and I were captured. You haven't answered the question. What's in it for you?"

"You could say I continue to work as I did at home. Do you want to know? Work for me and I'll tell you my secrets."

"Work for me? What can I do for you?"

"You are famous. Even if you don't have much power, you are famous in the sector. You can solve many of the problems of the privileged of Lothal or other small planets. In addition, you want to find a place where you can settle without a high chance of being captured by slavers. You can do a lot with your popularity. I want to use this opportunity to my advantage."

"I don't want to work with slavers and smugglers."

"You won't have to. I'd like to get a proxy on Lothal. You could make a lot of money, especially since Henry Hart is looking for popular organics to support his reforms on Lothal."

"I... Will they accept me into their [Capitol]? I'm a Twi'lek, and I doubt they're very tolerant of non-humans."

"It's not as big a problem as you think. Money is the main reason for their work."

"I'll think about it. Do you want to tell me how you convinced Reys to sell me? I don't think he has a compassionate soul all of a sudden."

"Until you decide to work for me, I won't tell you my secrets."

"Fair enough. So, what's your plan?"

"I'll buy organics and give them a chance. Maybe I'll bet on the future and buy freedom for children, probably orphans. I want to train loyal employees, or just those who will pay me back. If they don't want to work for me, I'll let them go."

"You will only be promoting the slave trade. And these children won't be able to work for the next 10 or even 15 years. Are you sure you have that much time?" Kash was unhappy with the idea but tried not to contradict me.

This novel is published on a different platform. Support the original author by finding the official source.

"Unfortunately, I have no choice but to wait and see if this idea really works."

"So you're really going to buy the kids back from the huts?"

"Yes, I'm going to buy orphans from all the slave owners in the region."

"Where are you going to put them? Although the ships are quite spacious, there is hardly enough room to transport a large number of children comfortably. And where will you put them when we get to Lothal?"

"I have ideas for housing on Lothal, but the bigger problem will be getting food for these children while we transport them." I scratched at the skin behind my ear.

"I don't want to get involved in this slave trade, but until you finish your business, we're not going anywhere."

"In that case, if you want to come with me, you'd better wear a fake slave collar, because someone might try to enslave you again."

"I don't even know if you're joking."

***

With the search for orphans in mind, I decided to visit slave auctions first.

"And a young slave was sold for 900 credits!"

It is clear that this market segment was only for the rich looking for slaves for sex slavery. New auctions started for Wookie, and it was then that we decided to discuss our goals.

"Can we get out of here? I don't see a single living soul here that fits into your plans." Kash was clearly uncomfortable with our presence on this auction ship.

"Actually, we haven't even gone through half of their slaves yet. Yes, we can't ask them here if they want to work for me, but this is probably the best opportunity to find slaves for sale in the middle of this desert planet."

"...Sold for 1200 credits to number 27! Dear guests, we have more items to prepare for sale, the auction will be suspended for 15 minutes, you can go to the ship's bar to wait for the auction to resume."

After the announcement, all the customers started to leave the room one by one. We decided to go to the bar as well. It was an interesting place, combining the cheap raider side of Tatooine with the desire to please the most prestigious part of the audience. All in all, not a great place, I'm definitely not going to stay here again.

"...And the latest reports. The Trade Federation, in response to the failure of the Eriadu negotiations, has extended the blockade of Naboo..."

Wow. I certainly didn't expect the Federation to be so bold as to literally threaten one of the Republic's planets. Of course, I don't know Republic law, but I'm sure there should be some sort of response. It is not for nothing that the Federation has raised its prices for transporting goods. It was all necessary to compensate for the allocation of ships for the blockade of the planet.

After a short pause, the auction resumed. It seemed to me that the mere fact of the blockade of Naboo had already shaken the entire stability of the Republic. The fact that it was even possible meant that many disloyal elements might try to rebel against the central government.

While I was thinking about how this event was going to affect the galaxy as a whole and trying to figure out what to do next, the auction went on.

Suddenly, a little Zygierian girl was brought on stage. By the way, Zygierians looked really cool.

"Another incredibly interesting slave! A young Zygierian that everyone can want! The starting price is 500 credits!"